Do headaches after an MRI indicate brain damage? | Is an MRI harmful?

Do headaches after an MRI indicate brain damage?

Patients often report the occurrence of headaches after an MRI examination. This can have several causes, but is not due to damage to the brain during the examination. Headaches can occur as a possible side effect of the contrast medium administered.

The contrast medium is excreted from the body within a few hours, which is why headaches usually do not last longer than two to three hours. Particularly in the case of kidney dysfunction (the contrast medium is eliminated from the body via the kidneys), the increased concentrations of the contrast medium in the blood can sometimes cause considerable headaches. Another cause of headaches can be the long stay in the tube.

Depending on the examination, imaging can take up to one hour. The patient must not move during this time. This can lead to muscle tension in the area of the neck and thus to headaches.

How harmful is contrast medium in an MRI?

Depending on the problem, the administration of a contrast agent may be necessary during an MRI examination. The contrast medium, which is usually injected via an intravenous access in the area of the elbow, is mainly used to better differentiate blood-supplied structures. Most commonly, stable gadolinium chelates (complexes) are used as contrast media.

Rarely, contrast media containing iodine are also used, as they are administered in CT. The occurrence of side effects after administration of gadolinium chelates is rare. Patients report a general feeling of discomfort, headache and nausea.

A temperature sensation disorder and tingling on the skin are also possible. However, these symptoms usually last only a few hours, as the contrast medium is quickly eliminated from the body via the kidneys. For this reason, kidney function should be examined before the contrast agent is administered.

This can be assessed by means of the creatinine value. Due to the high blood levels of gadolinium, systemic skin disease (nephrogenic systemic fibrosis) has occasionally been observed in recent years, particularly in cases of severe kidney function damage. In case of a planned administration of an iodine-containing contrast medium, an examination of the thyroid gland should be performed prior to MRI imaging. A determination of the TSH value can be used to assess an over/under function. In the case of severe hyperfunction, there is a risk of transition to a thyrotoxic crisis due to the iodine-containing contrast medium.